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Jul 2, 2024

Lakeshore Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Lakeshore Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.5

Organization 1.8

Spectators 2.7

Number of comments: 209 [displaying comments 131 to 141]

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B. S. from Chicago, IL (6/1/2004) "Great course, but some problems" (about: 2004) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Lakeshore Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The 2004 race was on a nice day, partly cloudy, no rain, temps in the 60s. Rain the night before caused a few reroutes and running through a waterlogged field, but nothing too bad. The start was unorganized, cars were lined up trying to get into the parking garage ten minutes before start time - how many runners missed the start? I couldn't hear what the announcer was saying on the PA and I wasn't that far from the front, and the wave start needed signs on the sides of the chute to give the runners some idea where to line up. The volunteers were all helpful and encouraging. Not many spectators. Water stops were adequate except there was no water at the finish line! There was some confusion with the half marathoners as I saw a group of them angrily discussing a routing screw up with a volunteer. This race should triple its budget for signage. Many mile markers were missing, especially in the middle of the race. The course needed more directional arrows. If you ran the race, check your chip times between 0-6.2, 6.2-13.1, 13.1-20, and 20-26.2 for consistency. My pace was something like 8:03 minutes per mile, 8:20, 6:44, and 8:03 for those 4 splits. There is no way I ran at a 6:44 pace between 13.1 and 20 miles. A buddy who also finished had similar times. My conclusion is that the course I ran, which was the same one as a lot of other runners ran, was short by about 1 to 1.2 miles. Somehow I missed a mile between halfway and 20 miles. It must have been at the very top (north) end where you were supposed to go all the way to Bryn Mawr. I don't know if I made it that far but I was just following the group I was running with and at no time up on the far end did I think I was off-course. I agree with what a previous runner wrote; this race needs to focus on an accurate course (and well marked) with accurate times. I don't think we got an accurate course in 2004. I really enjoyed this race as the course is about as beautiful as an urban marathon can get. But it is frustrating to finish and not be sure that your time is accurate.
Bonnie Platek from Spring Grove, Illinois, USA (6/1/2004) "Great course... organization needs a little help" (about: 2004) 6-10 previous marathons \| 3 Lakeshore Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I have run all three Lakeshore Marathons and will likely run the fourth. The course is beautiful, right along the lake front on a bike/running path. Added bonus, there are public bathrooms and drinking fountains along the way, in addition to the regular aid stations. Even in 2002, with horrific weather, there was still beauty in the course. City skylines on the west, Lake Michigan on the east. Course is very flat, with just a few little dips and rises in the last couple of miles. There was a very nice Memorial Day ceremony before the race with the Navy, a flag presentation to a WWII vet, and the singing of the National Anthem. The 'wave' start was good to prevent a crowded start and seeding was based on previous marathons and predicted finish times. Problem one: no sports drink until mile 6, only water... way too late to wait for electrolytes on a warm, humid day. Had I known, I'd have brought my own drink for the first 6 miles. The course needs to be better marked. Many of the 1/2 marathon runners were mixed up when the race with the full marathon split off. They shouldn't have been that confused... I heard volunteer calling out directions, but many people were not listening. Perhaps some signs would have helped. At least twice the mile markers were way out of place, and some were just non-existent. Not enough clocks on the course, either. Only at 10K, 1/2, and 20 miles. For $80 there should be more clocks. Sharing the course with the general public (walkers, bike riders, roller bladers, etc.) was a problem for some runners, but I found most people to be polite and gracious and gave anyone with a number pinned on them the right of way... many also cheered. Volunteers were great. Spectators were few, but enthusiastic. Good, small-town feel, in an urban location.
Tonya Siltman from Middletown, IL (6/1/2004) "Rotten First Marathon" (about: 2004) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The weather and the scenery was absolutely beautiful but at the point where the 1/2 marathoners and the marathons parted it all got messed up. I went the right direction the first time but when I looked around me all I saw were 1/2 bibs so I stopped at the water stop and asked which way I was supposed to go. I was directed back to where the halfs were supposed to go. I kept running and once again I noticed I was not seeing any marathon bibs. I asked again at the next water stop and was directed across the street where the marathoners were. I asked the lady if this was the same mileage and she said pretty close, you were running parallel. Ok, fine, so I went where I was directed again and finished my marathon a little over the time I had predicted for myself. I looked today and my name is not on the results. Gee I guess my first marathon is nothing now thanks to their screw-ups. I can't believe this was brushed off as no big deal. It was a big deal to me. I can't say I ran a marathon now.
H. F. from Chicago (6/1/2004) "Scenic route but poor organization" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Run this for a scenic route. However, there were a few organizational problems: 1) half-marathoners got onto the wrong route and had to back-track. 2) sports drink (Amino Vital) was not available at every drink station. 3) no one was at one of the stations (about mile 10)and a kind woman who was a runner's friend took on the task of putting out water and cups - thanks so much. 4) after mile 13.1, there were too few drink stations (less than 4) they were more than 1.5-2 miles apart 5) they ran out of cups at a few of the drink stations 6) definitely NO drink/gel station at mile 20 as stated in the 'Event Information'. 7) no porta-johns on the route that was arranged specifically for the race - some of the restroom facilities at the beachhouses were closed. They were trying to do things cheap by depending on the beachhouse facilities provided by the Chicago Park District. 8) given the cost of registration ($75, $80, $95), the facilities and support provided was poor. BOTTOM LINE - scenic route but do not rely too much on the organizers to provide the basics - water, fuel, and restroom facilities.
M. A. from IN (6/1/2004) "Disorganized, under-staffed scenic event." (about: 2004) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This race was well promoted, but I don't think it delivered for the price. There was no race information sheet/booklet available with such information as the location of the start line and how to find your way there (especially for out of town guests). The only course map was the big map available at the expo. I know a lot of this information was available from the internet, but unless you have a computer and think about printing out all the details before you go to the race, it doesn't do much good. As for the course, it was very hard to follow in some locations. I saw many half marathoners make the turn with the marathoners. There needed to be better signage and more volunteers at critical locations. There needs to be more water stops and more volunteers to man them. There were too many fast-riding, inconsiderate bikers on the course (not really the organizers fault, but some were riding too fast and almost hit some runners on more than one occasion). For the positives: I liked the scenic beauty of the course and the change of direction and surfaces throughout the course. The staggered start worked out well. The Chicago police did a great job of controlling the traffic! Overall I would consider running this event again. I just hope some of the organizational issues are addressed for future races.
Lori Lieb from Lincoln, NE (6/1/2004) "This race has the best and the worst in road races" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 The best 5 things about this race: 5. 6am start - it's still nice and cool out 4. Waved start - made for much less congestion and stress starting off 3. Flat - few hills and a very fast course! 2. Fans - they were so encouraging and supportive of me and I didn't even know them! 1. Course - beautiful and varied - a good mix of lake and parks The worst 5 things about this race: 5. No race or course information in the packets - it's good to go paperless, but that should have been mentioned on-line so we could print more off ahead of time 4. Lack of course markers - plenty of forks in the road that were unmarked and when runners are spread out, that adds much confusion and frustration! 3. No port-a-potties along the course - enough said 2. Lack of mile markers - runners depend on those for pace, and many markers were either misplaced or missing altogether, which made me doubt even the markers that WERE posted 1. No water at the finish line - I'm at a loss as to why this was left out
M. G. from Columbus, Georgia (6/1/2004) "Nice course, poor organization and no crowd suppor" (about: 2004) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 This was my second marathon, the first was the Oklahoma City Memorial last year which was absolutely an awesome experience. The only good thing about the Lakeshore Marathon is that it was a fast course and I reached my goal. It was poorly organized. Many times we would reach a water station and there were no cups, or you would have to get your own water. At a couple of stations there was just a table, no volunteers or water! At the last couple of stations volunteers were pouring water into your cupped hands or you could drink straight from the water jug. There were no mile markers from the 1/2 way mark to mile 16. Then there were none from mile 20 to 24. We did not see a first aid station on the course at all! There were very few spectators and some people watching would just stare at you and not offer any encouragement. There were some cyclists on the course and they actually yelled at us to move over or get off the path! I realize that is a public facility but we were running a marathon! Some of the course directions were confusing and I know some people running the 1/2 marathon got confused and ran extra distances. The expo was terrible (I've been to some bad expos before but nothing like this). There were hardly any vendors at all. On the positive side the course was scenic and flat. One of my running partners needed medical attention after the race and the medics were very knowledgable and attentive. However I would definitely not do this race again or recommend it to others.
Sarah Raleigh from Evanston, IL (6/1/2004) "Good beginning marathon" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 This was my first marathon and I didn't know what to expect after reading all the mediocre comments from years before. The staggered start was nice and it was nice to get a perfect start to my marathon. However, course markings were weak and the point where the half and full marathon split should have been marked with a sign, not just someone standing there yelling. Also, there was a water station in the zoo that no one came to set up and as the day got hotter and later, more stations were needed along the end of the course. Mile 22 was the last water station, because the closed the mile 23 water station after 9:00 or so. The small size was nice and the few cheerers there were encouraging and very supportive. Organization really needs improvement though.
K. G. from Minneapolis, MN (6/1/2004) "Disorganized but pretty" (about: 2004) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 Having run such well organized races as Grandma's and Twin Cities, maybe I expected too much, but this was disorganized. The wave start is a good idea, but nobody knew what to do. The beginning of the race was chaos. There were no 'race-day instructions' in our race packet, so difficult to know where to go for the start up; and also no information about the gear bags, water stops, carbo-load, etc. The absolute worst was the lack of port-o-potties. How can you not have even one port-o-potty on the entire 26.2 marathon course? I guess we should be thankful for the thunderstorms the night before causing trees to fall down as it provided cover for girls who were forced to relieve themselves in public due to a lack of facilities. What happened to the water the last 4 miles of the race? I got dehydrated at the end with the heat and humidity. A little water for final 4 miles of the race would have been nice. Also we were told there would be carbo-load at mile 14 and mile 21, but we never got it at mile 21. Ran out of cups at mile 19, so no water there either. Made the end of the race very difficult. It was a beautiful course, but needs lots of kinks worked out. Not sure if I'd do it again.
K. L. from Iowa (6/1/2004) "Sub-Par Marathon" (about: 2004) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Lakeshore Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I was very disappointed in this marathon and I'm sure some of it was my fault. The race was disorganized. A great race experience comes down to details and Lakeshore didn?t make a passing grade. (It?s not just about our times.) I asked about the corrals at the expo and they told me it would be obvious. There where no signs - apparently it was done by bib number. They did let waves go at the start every minute or so. It was so poorly done though that when it got to me everyone just went. I also asked at the expo about getting twist ties to put the chip on my shoe because they didn?t give any with the chip and the volunteer said, ?I have something?. My brother said, ?Well, that?s nice but what about the rest of us.? We didn't get a response. We had to use our shoelaces to tie the chip on and at the end they only had 2 people untying peoples' shoes. Good thing this is a small race. Here are some other things that went wrong. At least 6 water stations where either out of water, cups and one station had water and cups but no volunteers. Runners had to fill the cups themselves and the water stops they did have only had water 1/5 to 1/4 full. I don?t blame the volunteers; they were busting their butts trying to get something in the cups. The problem was there weren?t enough volunteers. Now at the start it was 63 degrees with 97% humidity not exactly great marathoning weather. I would think if I were a race director to make sure there was enough water and volunteers to get it done. I got so dehydrated that I wanted to drop out, but there weren?t any officials to help me. I had to walk and lie down many times since I could not walk straight in the last 3 miles but I still made it in under 4:30 as I walked across the finish line. I know part of that could be my fault as I could have taken my own fluids, but in a marathon where I?m paying money, I should not have to do that. Had most of the stations had water, my situation would never have occurred. I don?t think I had anything after the 13 miles until about 18. I was running hard so that was too long to go without water and it hit me about started hitting mile 21. Several miles were not marked and the course got so confusing when the half marathoners and marathoners split several people went the wrong way. My parents said they heard 2 runners ran 2 miles before they realized they went the wrong way. My parents where at this spot trying to find me and my brother (he was doing the half) and they couldn?t tell what was going on. They asked some people and they said they were only volunteers and didn?t know. The problem was there was only 1 person directing the runners where to go. Paint the sidewalk - that would help. It wasn?t an awful marathon despite how I felt. I know dehydration is partly my fault. Actually I had been taking some allergy stuff which I believe contributed to my dehydration. But, I?ve been to so many races that where done well (like the Chicago Marathon) I wouldn?t recommend this marathon if you looking for a great experience. My biggest complaint is when I needed help there was no one to help me. At longer races I?ve been to there is usually help close to the end. Now, I could have asked some other runners, but I?m not about the drag them down. Surprisingly no one really asked me if I need help although as I was lying on the ground I heard one runner say, ?I hope he?s done?. If you?re looking to run a marathon and have it feel like a long training session this is the race for you. They have had 3 years to get this right and haven?t.

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